Though nothing has been confirmed, White House officials are in preparation of an announcement from Obama’s Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel that will confirm his decision to leave his position at the White House to make a run for mayor of Chicago. The announcement may come as early as October 1, as a result of pressure from the Obama administration.
Emanuel’s mayoral aspirations are notorious. In April of this year, he told Bloomberg, One day I would like to run for mayor of the city of Chicago. Thats always been an aspiration of mine, even when I was in the House of Representatives.
Once Chicago’s longtime mayor Richard Daley announced he would not be seeking reelection, Emanuel’s resignation seemed to be the next logical step. Emanuel, who grew up in Chicago, was a chief fundraiser for Daley’s first mayoral race in 1989.
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Emanuel must declare his decision to enter the race no later than November 22, however. The process is lengthy as it involves acquiring 12,500 signatures by that date in order to qualify for Chicago’s Democratic primary, scheduled for February 22, 2011.
Even President Obama encouraged Emanuel not to hesitate in his decision. I think that Rahm will have to make a decision quickly, because running for mayor of Chicago is a serious enterprise. According to ABC News, Obama has been clear that Emanuel has his blessing when the job opened, aides calling it an unbelievably attractive opportunity.
Emanuel has faced difficulties in this decision, as sources close to him have reported that family considerations have weighed heavily on his mind. The notion of uprooting his wife and children once again to relocate is a prospect that has served as a deterrent.
While the President has indicated that Emanuel would make an excellent mayor, he has not yet mentioned whether he would give a presidential endorsement to his chief of staff. In his short time as President Obama’s chief of staff, Emanuel has certainly made a name for himself. According to the Guardian, Emanuel was initially hailed by Obama supporters as a hardball politician, known for his profanity, who would help the president get things done in Congress.
Similarly, the New York Times labeled Emanuel as the most influential chief of staff in a generation.
In recent months, however, Emanuel’s credibility fizzled among liberal Democrats who felt that Emanuel showed willingness to appease Obama’s Republican opponents, particularly when he urged President Obama to abandon his health care bill. Likewise, Democrats have targeted Emanuel for his alleged inability to publicly relate Obama’s message.
In response to the criticism, Emanuel referred to his critics as f$#!n retarded.
Emanuel’s likely departure comes at a difficult time for the Obama administration, as the crucial midterms are fast approaching, bearing the promise of a potential Republican majority. Likewise, Obama continues to face a 52 percent disapproval rate, according to an ABC/Washington Post September poll.
Obama will likely name an interim chief of staff to enable a smooth transition. Under consideration for the position is senior adviser Pete Rouse. Another potential candidate is Vice President Biden’s chief of staff Ron Klain. Additionally, Deputy National Security Advisor Tom Donilon and White House deputy chief of staff Jim Messina have all been listed as potential replacements. Politico reports that CIA director Leon Panetta is being considered as well.
On the other hand, Obama is said to be contemplating candidates from outside of the current administration as well, including former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle and Obama’s 2008 campaign manager David Plouffe.
Emanuel is one of several members of Obama’s administration leaving their positions.
Last week, Obama’s National Economic Council director Larry Summers announced his intent to leave the administration after midterm elections, though he never provided a reason for his departure. Summers plans to return to his position as professor at Harvard University.
In August, economist Christina Romer elected to leave the Obama administration and return to teaching, suspiciously on the eve of an employment report that highlighted the Obama administration’s failure to create jobs
Office of Management and Budget direct Peter Orzsag, who announced his departure at the beginning of the summer, was the first member of Obama’s cabinet to leave the White House. Orzsag served for two years at the Congressional Budget Office under President George W. Bush prior to joining the Obama administration.
In addition to these recent resignations, communications directors Ellen Moran and Anita Dunn, along with social secretary Desiree Rogers, resigned from their positions early in the administration.
Comments made by President Obama at a recent town-hall style meeting indicate that there may continue to be changes to Obama’s administration. During the question/answer session of the meeting, Obama credited his team’s performance as an outstanding job, but also questioned, Is what we’re doing working as well as it could? Do we have other options and other alternatives that we can explore?
His remarks came only a month after Senate Minority Leader John Boehner urged President Obama to consider seeking the resignations of members of the economic team, most notably Tim Geithner and Larry Summers.
According to the Financial Times, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner may potentially be the next deserter, as his future continues to remain uncertain. FT reports that Geithner has been the subject of frequent speculation since he joined the Treasury from the New York Federal Reserve when Mr. Obama took office last year.
Press Secretary Robert Gibbs has found himself in the uncomfortable position of having to justify the increased number of departures in a relatively short period of time:
I think there’s no doubt that there will be people that return to their lives and their families. But we’ve got a while before that. We’ve got at least two months before this election of about two months before this election before we get to a lot of those decisions.
While Obama emphasized that he has not yet made official decisions regarding his personnel, it seems likely that there will continue to be changes made to the administration before and after midterm elections.
Photo: White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel laughs about his recent comment about someday wanting to be mayor of Chicago while participating in the sixth annual Richard J. Daley Global Cities Forum in Chicago, April 27, 2010: AP Image
